2023 Toyota Rav4 Brakes Problems

While you were braking to back into your garage, your 2023 Hybrid RAV4 accelerated on its own instead of slowing down, even though the brake lights showed on the dashboard. The car continued accelerating and hit the garage wall. This suggests a potential issue with the brake system or forward collision avoidance system not responding correctly to your brake input.

When braking while hitting a bump, your RAV4 may temporarily lose braking power for 1 to 3 seconds, accompanied by a grinding noise and a flashing VSC light. This happens unpredictably at various speeds and brake pressures, and you've had close calls entering intersections when braking failed. The dealer hasn't been able to reproduce or fix the issue. The fix will likely involve a diagnostic check of your braking system, ABS module, and suspension components that may be affecting brake performance during bumpy conditions.

When you press the brake pedal, your car doesn't stop immediately and instead starts shaking while displaying a slippery road warning—even though conditions are dry. It takes significantly longer to come to a complete stop than normal. Since your brake pads are new, this suggests a problem with the braking system beyond simple pad wear that needs immediate professional inspection.

Your brakes are temporarily releasing when you hit small bumps on dry pavement at slow speeds, causing the vehicle to surge forward for a split second before the brakes re-engage. This happens frequently during stop-and-go traffic, when approaching intersections, or coasting downhill, and Toyota's computer confirms the ABS system is being triggered each time. While Toyota says this is normal ABS operation, you've found this doesn't match typical ABS behavior from your 40 years of driving experience, and your service technician has reported seeing the same issue on at least 5-6 other RAV4s. A diagnostic inspection and possible reprogramming or replacement of the ABS control module or brake system components may be needed to resolve this.